Whoops! It was only meant to be a peck on the cheeks

An ostrich almost lost its head after deciding to give a rhino a friendly peck on the bottom. The two-tonne animal was so startled by the bird’s attention that its hind legs left the ground.

The ostrich’s rare encounter with Kai, the newest arrival at Woburn Safari Park, Bedfordshire, was captured on camera. The two species usually get on well and the bird was pecking at flies on the rhino’s hide. Abi Crowley, the marketing manager, said: “Kai has never met an ostrich and it’s safe to say this encounter startled him. Ostriches are known for their lack of intelligence and this bird probably thought it was being friendly.”

Kai came from Edinburgh zoo in exchange for his brother Otzee, who was having trouble mating.…